Wireless technology is getting better all the time. I just bought an N1 router from DLINK (with Gigabit LAN!) and a Belkin N1 PCI card. With local access at a staggering 300 Mbps over the air, I am fairly pleased with the performance. I do not have anything that supports Gigabit yet, but expect to have something later.

Now, researchers from Georgia Tech have devised a method to push data through the air at speeds reaching 15 gigabits a second… at one meter. Also, each additional meter between the source and the client drop the speeds 5Gbps. Okay, so at this point, you might as well buy a Gigabit router and a 50 ft ethernet cable and get 1Gbps at farther range, but this device has its advantages.

Apply this to a media center PC (I am currently building a Linux-based Media Center, coming in a future NextLust article) or a laptop on a couch right next to an access point, and the potential for awesomeness expands. While the technology is still officially unnamed, it is referred to as standard 802.15.3c. Heres to hoping that they increase the range to at least 15 meters, so that this would be a much more interesting product.

[Via Georgia Tech]

Media centers seem to be all the rage nowadays, as high definition movies and television shows, as well as higher quality picture and music have started to invade the market. While some recent additions to the media center families, like AppleTV and distinguished models from several startup companies have been impressive, none have really captured the idea of replacing a Tivo, computer, amplifier, receiver, Netflix deliveries, media players, DVD player, and catch-all computer … until now.

As Alienware describes it, the Hangar 18 can do just about anything:

* Watch - Watch, pause, and record your movies, TV shows, photos, and internet videos on your widescreen TV in high definition
* Listen - Listen to all your favorite songs and artists with Hangar18’s onboard 5.1 surround sound amplifier
* Share - Wirelessly stream all your media to other PCs, mobile devices, and media extenders throughout your home.
* Download - Download content from all over the internet to one secure location to store and share with your home and others.

Full details and more pictures inside!
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